The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1887-02-25
z. WHOLE NO. 02O.
BILL NYE AS A BOY.
He Recalls the Days of Childhood and
TurninS.
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He Recalls the Days of Childhood and
Turnips.
If | We're boy again, endowed with the
same wild passion for plucking watermelons
in the dark of the moon, / would no doubt
fall victim to that overmastering passion
as did before; but looking at it as do now,
would be wiser. Boys cannot, however,
have the mature Judgment of manhood with
out the experience and the rheumatism that
60 with it. So it is better that in our child
hood we may be able to eat raw turnip
with safety and know something later on in
life.
! notice a great change in myself while
comparing my present condition with that
of joyous boyhood. Then had no sense, but
had good digestion. Now l haven't even
the digestion.
The hurrying years have cavorted over
my sunny head till they have worn it smooth,
but they have left good deal yet for me to
learn. I am still engaged in learning during
the day and putting arnica on my experience
at night
Childhood is said to be the most gladstone
period in our lives, and in some respects this
statement may be regarded as reliable, but it
is not al joy. have had just as much fun
in later years as did in boyhood, though the
people with whom / have been thrown In
contact claim that their experience has been
different. hope they do not mean anything
personal by that.
do sometimes wish that could be boy
again, but l smother that wish on account
OF my parents. What they need most is rest
and change of scene. They still enjoy chill
dren, but they would like chance to select
the children with whom they associate
My parents were blest with five bright-eyed
and beautiful little boys, three of whom grew
up and by that means became adults I am
in that condition myself. l was the eldest Of
the family with the exception of my parents
I am still that way. My early life was rather
tempestuous in places, occasionally flecked
with sunshine, but more frequently with
retribution. was not very good roadster
when young, and so retribution was most
always just in the act of overtaking me.
While outraged justice was getting in its
work on me, the other boys escaped through
a small aperture in the fence.
That is another reason why | do not yearn
to be boy again.
When we ran away from school to catch
chubs, and when we built O fire to cook them
and the fire got into the tall dry grass and
burned four miles of fence and sixteen tons
Of hay for gentleman for whom l had a
high regard, and went back to put out the
fire, the other boys escaped and have so re-
manned ever since.
A just retribution has never had any diff
Guilty in overtaking me and walking up and
down over my wishbone.
When a party of us had been engaged in
gathering Easter eggs in tie barn Of gentle
man who was away from home at the time,
and he returned just as we had filled'our
pockets with the choicest vintage of his sun
kissed hens, the other boys escaped while
was occupying the attention of the dog, and
/ had to slide out the second story of the
barn. It is still fresh i'll my mind as write
I wore my fathers vest at that time and it
was larger than was necessary. My father was
larger than at that time, for | was only 9
years of age and had not arrived ut my full
In sliding down the batten l dis
covered that the upper end of it was loose
and that my flowing vest had slipped over it.
SO that when got down about four feet
hun with the board buttoned il,se my
bosom and the scambled eggs oo1lng out of
my knickerbockers assa saA